This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website on June 6, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Progeny means:
A) Offspring
B) Feisty worker
C) Type of butterfly
D) Shiny plate
Vocab Practice: PROGENY
June 12, 2013 by
Vocab Practice: PROLIX
June 11, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website on June 3, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Prolix means:
A) Passive
B) Highly advanced
C) Tempestuous
D) Long-winded
What’s Your BAILIWICK?
June 10, 2013 by
Do you have a favorite subject in school? Maybe it’s science or math. Or perhaps you prefer reading or art. Or it could be anything that involves a computer.
Whatever you excel at is a good starting point for thinking about a future career. There are literally hundreds of occupations you may want to consider.
For example, if you’re good at science, you may want to become an engineer or a pharmacist. If reading is your favorite activity, you might want to become a librarian or a writer.
If you love computers, you might become a website manager or a database administrator.
Once you determine your bailiwick (see definition below), you’ll be in a great position to think about your future!
To read more about fun jobs, go to: http://kids.usa.gov/teens-home/jobs/index.shtml
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What’s your bailiwick, and do you think you can use it in a career?
BAILIWICK: Area of skill or knowledge; jurisdiction of a bailiff.
The Many Faces of Insanity, Emilie J., 8th grade, Birkerød, Denmark
June 6, 2013 by
We hear it every day. Mostly. We hear it at school, at home, in the TV, at the psychiatrist’s. The word “insane.” I don’t know any other word with so many entertaining synonyms. Some of the more inventive ones are “cuckoo” and “gaga.” Then we have “batty,” “loony,” “loopy” and “nutty,” even going as far as “yumpy,” definitely one of my favorites. Some are longer, more strange, like “having a screw loose,” “having lost your marbles,” “being mad as a hatter” or being a “space cadet” or “wacko.”
But I can honestly say with no doubt in my mind that “bonkers” is the best of them all. When you say it with a thick British accent, it somehow seems to sound like exactly what it describes. “Bonkers” is just so satisfying to say, and it’s definitely one of my favorite words of all time in English.
Thank you to my friends, to my English teacher Helle, and to Peeves and Vernon Dursley from Harry Potter for these examples. You really helped a lot, guys.
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Get Your PROGENY in a Row
June 6, 2013 by
“Get your ducks in a row” is a rather odd-sounding expression that means having everything in order.
There have been lots of theories to explain the origin of this phrase.
Some people believe that the expression originated in bowling alleys, where the pins were sometimes called “ducks.”
Others speculate that the expression refers to real mother ducks that travel with their progeny (see definition below) often tagging behind in straight lines.
Do you have any theories on the origin of “get your ducks in a row”?
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: Which animals do you think have the cutest progeny?
PROGENY: Children or offspring of animals or plants.
Vocabulary Practice: Remember CONFLAGRATION?
June 5, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website on May 30, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Conflagration means:
A) Decorated with a flag
B) Confused state
C) Honorary appointment
D) A large, destructive fire
Vocabulary Practice: Remember DILATORY?
June 4, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website on May 27, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Dilatory means:
A) Dilated
B) Punishing
C) Tardy
D) Overabundance
Beware of PROLIX Prose!
June 3, 2013 by
When you step foot in a classroom, odds are that a good part of the learning process will involve reading.
Generally, the longer we stay in school, the faster we become at reading.
By the time most people reach adulthood, for example, they will be able to read about 250 words per minute. Believe it or not, a champion speed-reader once logged more than 4,500 words a minute!
But speed isn’t everything. What’s most important is recognizing that the books we read allow us to visit worlds that are different from our own.
So, whether you’re engrossed in an action-packed science-fiction novel or a plodding through a prolix (see definition below) history book, take some time to just enjoy the ride!
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: Can you name a prolix piece of writing?
PROLIX: Drawn out, wordy, long-winded.
Beware of CONFLAGRATIONS!
May 30, 2013 by
When the weather turns hot and dry, fast-moving, devastating wildfires occur in many parts of the world.
These conflagrations (see definition below) are often caused by people who are careless with campfires but also may result from lightning strikes.
Wildfires tend to occur most often in such areas as Australia and Western states of the United States, such as California, Idaho and Montana.
Each year, more than 100,000 wildfires, on average, break out in the United States and typically clear millions of acres of land.
Even though you may think that wildfires would occur only during the summer, they can strike any month of the year.
Like hurricanes and earthquakes, wildfires can be truly disastrous. To learn more about wildfires, go to: http://www.noaawatch.gov/themes/fire.php
Cool word vocabulary question of the day: What do you think are the best ways to prevent a conflagration?
CONFLAGRATION: An extensive, destructive fire.
Vocabulary Practice: Remember CONFER?
May 29, 2013 by
This word appeared on the Cool Word Club website on May 23, 2013.
Let’s do a practice round!
Confer means:
A) Tree-like
B) Bestow
C) Seldom
D) Guilty
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